Different gas injectors?

[AdamW]

After reading the post about the mains supplied barbecue, I got to thinking...

My hob (gas) was supplied with methane jets (for natural gas) and LPG jets (for bottled gas). Methane jets were ready installed (as you would expect!)

Now, obviously I am NOT going to go experimenting with a gas appliance, but out of interest I was wondering:

what would happen if someone used the LPG jets with methane, or vice versa? Would you just get a sooty flame, or would you actually get backburn up the pipes or some other dangerous situation?

 

[Freddie]

Hello Adam

The gas burner would be designed and manufactured to supply a certain amount of heat for its purpose, so the injector jets will deliver the amount of gas that is required for that heat.

Propane and Butane have a higher calorific value than Natural gas so the hole in the injector jet will be smaller than one for Natural gas.

So if you put propane through natural gas jets then the burner would burn yellow and soot up as too much gas is being injected into the burner

If you putnatural gas through propane jets then the burner would work ok but at a lower rate so the burner wouldnt be producing the amount of heat required as not enough gas is being injected into the burner.


There are other things to take into account but they are the basics

No you will not get back burn in the pipes, you can get a blow back where the gas burns inside the burner instead of on top of the burner gauze or grill but that is when you start to use a jet meant for low pressure with high pressure propane.

You cant get burning inside your gas pipes as there isnt supposed to be any air in there and gas or anything will not burn without air or oxygen

 

[Slugbabydotcom]

what would happen if someone used the LPG jets with methane, or vice versa?

Apart from whats been said above the appliance would be classed as immediately Dangerous and capped off

 

[Noraslad]

It's not just the injectors that have to be taken into account, also the materials of construction of the appliance. Some are not compatible with both gases, therefore manufacturers will stipulate whether they can or cannot be converted.

 

[Freddie]

It's not just the injectors that have to be taken into account, also the materials of construction of the appliance. Some are not compatible with both gases, therefore manufacturers will stipulate whether they can or cannot be converted.

Well i never have heard that before, but as regards the burners you may have to adjust the primary airation ports on the venturi, if this is so the manufacturers usually supply a metal slieve which will slide over the ports so they can be adjusted by the engineer who does the conversion.

 

[ollski]

most rubber seals like o rings and the majority of sealants are not allowed for lpg, it will destroy any petroleum based stuffs and will actually leak through most fibre washers.

 

[Freddie]

most rubber seals like o rings and the majority of sealants are not allowed for lpg, it will destroy any petroleum based stuffs and will actually leak through most fibre washers.

But where are these things on a gas burner ?

Sorry Oilski see what you mean, i was only thinking of the burner but then i should imagine that most things are made universal nowadays, if they arent then i think they should

 

[Noraslad]

Recently in America one local supplier started bringing in liquified Nat Gas.

The composition was slightly different to the gas they had been using for years.

All the pipeline seals etc. started popping as the impurities in the new gas attacked them.

So it doesn't just have to be Nat to LPG.

 

[Freddie]

Recently in America one local supplier started bringing in liquified Nat Gas.

The composition was slightly different to the gas they had been using for years.

All the pipeline seals etc. started popping as the impurities in the new gas attacked them.

So it doesn't just have to be Nat to LPG.

Propane and butane and other gas's are cleaned from natural gas before its sent around the grid in the uk

 

[Noraslad]

Propane and butane and other gas's are cleaned from natural gas before its sent around the grid in the uk

Never said propane and butane, there are varying different elements contained in Nat Gas depending on where it comes from. Estimates are anywhere between 30+ up to over 100+ I've read in different reports.

 

[Freddie]

Propane and butane and other gas's are cleaned from natural gas before its sent around the grid in the uk

Never said propane and butane, there are varying different elements contained in Nat Gas depending on where it comes from. Estimates are anywhere between 30+ up to over 100+ I've read in different reports.

Never been told that, that could explain the flares on the rigs, but i know when it comes on shore it is mixed to get the right calorific value then pumped around the UK by the same jet engines that power a Jumbo jet--RB211's i think